All optical chopping using logic gates apparatus and method

Abstract

An all optical chopping device for shaping and reshaping comprising an all optical AND logic gate having a first input for receiving a first optical signal, a second input for receiving a second optical signal and at least one output. The AND gate may be arranged to produce at least at one output thereof an optical output signal corresponding to a portion of the AND product of the first optical signal and the second optical signals. The optical output signal may be narrower than at least one of the first optical signal and the second optical signal.

Description

FIELD OF INVENTION The invention relates to optical shaping, optical reshaping, optical communication devices and systems, in particularly to optical shapers and choppers. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the field of optical communication there is a strong demand for optical shaping, reshaping, and chopping of optical signals to perform transmission of optical information at a very high quality and very low Bit Error Rate (BER). The implementation of ultra fast optical communication network faces, among other challenges, two major obstacles. The first is the need to produce very fast modulators and the second is to maintain high quality optical signals along significant distances to keep very low BER. To produce the signals, at a very fast rate, there is a need for very fast modulators that are capable of producing very narrow optical pulses. Fast modulators are very expensive and there are only few types of modulators capable of producing narrow optical pulses suitable for use i...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

It is an object of some embodiments of the present invention to provide an all optical pulse chopper capable of producing narrow pulses.

Another object of some embodiments of the present invention is to provide an all optical pulse shaper that is capable of shaping and reshaping pulses, thus improving their quality.

Problems solved by technology

The implementation of ultra fast optical communication network faces, among other challenges, two major obstacles.

Fast modulators are very expensive and there are only few types of modulators capable of producing narrow optical pulses suitable for use in extremely fast rate.

O-E-O regenerators are very expensive and complicated and thus dramatically increase the network cost in terms of infrastructure initial cost and maintenance cost.

In addition the O-E-O regenerators reduce the network reliability.

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